China’s strategies to control acidifying pollutants and particulate matter (PM) may be in conflict for soil acidification abatement. Acidifying pollutant emissions are estimated for 2005 and 2020 with anticipated control policies. PM emissions including base cations (BCs) are evaluated with two scenarios, a base case applying existing policy to 2020, and a control case including anticipated tightened measures. Depositions of sulfur (S), nitrogen (N) and BCs are simulated and their acidification risks are evaluated with critical load (CL). In 2005, the area exceeding CL covered 15.6% of mainland China, with total exceedance of 2.2 Mt S. These values decrease in the base scenario 2020, implying partial recovery from acidification. Under more realistic PM control, the respective estimates are 17.9% and 2.4 Mt S, indicating increased acidification risks due to abatement of acid-neutralizing BCs. China’s anthropogenic PM abatement will have potentially stronger chemical implications for acidification than developed countries.

The aim of this study is to test the applicability of snow surveying in the collection and detailed characterization of vehicle-derived magnetic particles. Road dust extracted from snow, collected near a busy urban highway and a low traffic road in a rural environment (southern Finland), was studied using magnetic, geochemical and micro-morphological analyses. Significant differences in horizontal distribution of mass specific magnetic susceptibility (χ) were noticed for both roads. Multi-domain (MD) magnetite was identified as the primary magnetic mineral. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) analyses of road dust from both roads revealed: (1) angular-shaped particles (diameter ∼1–300 μm) mostly composed of Fe, Cr and Ni, derived from circulation of motor vehicles and (2) iron-rich spherules (d ∼ 2–70 μm). Tungsten-rich particles (d < 2 μm), derived from tyre stud abrasion were also identified. Additionally, a decreasing trend in χ and selected trace elements was observed with increasing distance from the road edge.

Clear association exists between ambient PM₁₀ concentrations and adverse health outcomes. However, determination of the strength of associations between exposure and illness is limited by low spatial-resolution of particulate concentration measurements. Conventional fixed monitoring stations provide high temporal-resolution data, but cannot capture fine-scale spatial variations. Here we examine the utility of biomagnetic monitoring for spatial mapping of PM₁₀ concentrations around a major industrial site. We combine leaf magnetic measurements with co-located PM₁₀ measurements to achieve inter-calibration. Comparison of the leaf-calculated and measured PM₁₀ concentrations with PM₁₀ predictions from a widely-used atmospheric dispersion model indicates that modelling of stack emissions alone substantially under-predicts ambient PM₁₀ concentrations in parts of the study area. Some of this discrepancy might be attributable to fugitive emissions from the industrial site. The composition of the magnetic particulates from vehicle and industry-derived sources differ, indicating the potential of magnetic techniques for source attribution.

Identification of hot spots for urban fine particulate matter (PM₂.₅) concentrations is complicated by the significant contributions from regional atmospheric transport and the dependence of spatial and temporal variability on averaging time. We focus on PM₂.₅ patterns in New York City, which includes significant local sources, street canyons, and upwind contributions to concentrations. A literature synthesis demonstrates that long-term (e.g., one-year) average PM₂.₅ concentrations at a small number of widely-distributed monitoring sites would not show substantial variability, whereas short-term (e.g., 1-h) average measurements with high spatial density would show significant variability. Statistical analyses of ambient monitoring data as a function of wind speed and direction reinforce the significance of regional transport but show evidence of local contributions. We conclude that current monitor siting may not adequately capture PM₂.₅ variability in an urban area, especially in a mega-city, reinforcing the necessity of dispersion modeling and methods for analyzing high-resolution monitoring observations.

Air pollution by particulate matter is well linked with anthropogenic activities; the global economic crisis that broke out in the last year may be a proper indicator of this close relationship. Some economic indicators show the regional effects of the crisis on the Cantabria Region. The present work aims to evaluate the impact of the economic crisis on PM10 levels and composition at the major city of the region, Santander. Some metals linked to anthropogenic activities were measured at Santander and studied by Positive Matrix Factorization; this statistical analysis allowed to identify three main factors: urban background, industrial and molybdenum-related factor. The main results show that the temporal trend of the levels of the industrial tracers found in the present study are well agree with the evolution of the studied economic indicators; nevertheless, the urban background tracers and PM10 concentration levels are not well correlated with the studied economic indicators.

This study examined polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in central air conditioner filter (CACF) dust from a new office building in Shenzhen, China. Human exposure to PBDE via dust inhalation and ingestion were also estimated. PBDEs level in CACF dust was lower than those in the other countries and regions. Approximately 0.671 pg/kg bw/day PM₂.₅ (Particulate Matter up to 2.5 μm in size) bounded Σ₁₅PBDEs can be inhaled deep into the lungs and 4.123 pg/kg bw/day PM₁₀ (Particulate Matter up to 10 μm in size) bounded Σ₁₅PBDEs tend to be deposited in the upper parts of the respiratory system. The average total intake of Σ₁₅PBDEs via dust inhalation and ingestion for adults reached ∼141 pg/kg bw/day in this building. This value was far below the reference dose (RfD) recommended by United States Environmental Protection Agency. Human exposure to PBDEs via dust inhalation and ingestion in the new building is less than the old ones.

Atmospheric deposition of trace metals and metalloids from anthropogenic sources has led to the contamination of many European peatlands. To assess the fate and behaviour of previously deposited arsenic and lead, we constructed catchment-scale mass budgets for a degraded peatland in Northern England. Our results show a large net export of both lead and arsenic via runoff (282 ± 21.3 gPb ha⁻¹ y⁻¹ and 60.4 ± 10.5 gAs ha⁻¹ y⁻¹), but contrasting controls on this release. Suspended particulates account for the majority of lead export, whereas the aqueous phase dominates arsenic export. Lead release is driven by geomorphological processes and is a primary effect of erosion. Arsenic release is driven by the formation of a redox-dynamic zone in the peat associated with water table drawdown, a secondary effect of gully erosion. Degradation of peatland environments by natural and anthropogenic processes has the potential to release the accumulated pool of legacy contaminants to surface waters.

We monitored curbside airborne particulate matter (PM) concentrations and its proinflammatory capacity during 3 weekends when vehicle traffic was excluded from Park. Ave., New York City. Fine PM concentration peaked in the morning regardless of traffic while ultrafine PM was 58% lower during mornings without traffic. Ultrafine PM concentration varied linearly with traffic flow, while fine PM spiked sharply in response to random traffic events that were weakly correlated with the traffic signal cycle. Ultrafine PM concentrations decayed exponentially with distance from a cross street with unrestricted traffic flow, reaching background levels within 100 m of the source. IL-6 induction was typically highest on Friday afternoons but showed no clear relationship to the presence of traffic. The coarse fraction (>2.5 μm) had the greatest intrinsic inflammatory capacity, suggesting that coarse PM still warrants attention even as the research focus is shifting to nano-particles.

Levels of cocaine and other psychoactive substances in atmospheric particulate matter (PM) were determined in urban environments representing distinct social behaviours with regard to drug abuse: night-life, university and residential areas. Three cities (with population >1 million and <0.3 million inhabitants) were selected. Mean daily levels of drugs in PM were 11–336 pg/m³ for cocaine, 23–34 pg/m³ for cannabinoids, and 5–90 pg/m³ for heroin. The highest levels were recorded on weekends, with factors with respect to weekdays of 1–3 for cocaine, 1–2 for cannabinoids and 1.1–1.7 for heroin. Higher levels were detected in the night-life areas, pointing towards consumption and trafficking as major emission sources, and possibly ruling out drug manufacture. The similarities in temporal trends at all sites suggested a city-scale transport of psychoactive substances. Correlations were detected between cocaine and amphetamine consumption (r² = 0.98), and between heroin and cannabinoids (r²>0.82).

Paired indoor and outdoor concentrations of fine and coarse particulate matter (PM), PM2.5 reflectance [black carbon(BC)], and nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) were determined for sixteen weeks in 2008 at four elementary schools (two in high and two in low traffic density zones) in a U.S.–Mexico border community to aid a binational health effects study. Strong spatial heterogeneity was observed for all outdoor pollutant concentrations. Concentrations of all pollutants, except coarse PM, were higher in high traffic zones than in the respective low traffic zones. Black carbon and NO₂ appear to be better traffic indicators than fine PM. Indoor air pollution was found to be well associated with outdoor air pollution, although differences existed due to uncontrollable factors involving student activities and building/ventilation configurations. Results of this study indicate substantial spatial variability of pollutants in the region, suggesting that children’s exposures to these pollutants vary based on the location of their school.